Thin-film solar cells manufacturer AQT Solar has received US$18.7 million from investors to double production at its headquarters in Sunnyvale, California, US. Details of the investors have not been disclosed.
First Solar will use the Waste Management Phoenix Open, as part of the PGA Tour, in Scotsdale, Arizona, US, to showcase its solar PV arrays to power the event, including the waste management hospitality tent at the 18th hole. The company will have exclusive rights to the event as the only solar energy provider.
The government of Qinghai Province's Tibetan autonomous prefecture of Hainan has teamed up with GSF Capital to construct a 1GW solar power plant in inland Qinghai. Renewables investment firm GSF Capital signed an MOU with the government body recently for the development of the plant, the cost of which was undisclosed.
SunPower and Salt River Project (SRP) recently announced that they will be developing a 1MW solar PV plant at Arizona State University’s (ASU) Polytechnic campus in Mesa, Arizona. The organizations advised that this will be the first commercial deployment of SunPower’s C7 Tracker technology. SunPower will lead the engineering and construction of the plant while additionally operating and maintaining it upon completion.
Die Sonnenfirma has finished construction of a 1.46MWp solar project in the Bavarian city of Würzburg. The system, which is the largest in north Bavaria, has already passed the EEG test and grid connection will be achieved in the coming weeks.
The record PV installation figures of 7.5GW for Germany in 2011 have two separate leading market research firms agreeing on total new PV installations topping 26GW for the year, around a 50% increase of 2011 installations of over 17.5GW. Both IHS iSuppli and IMS Research feel confident that 2011 will be another record year for the industry.
A former vice president at Q-Cells, Matthias Altieri has joined UK-based merchant bank, ThomasLloyd Group to run its solar energy funding operations as managing director. The appointment was made at the beginning of December, 2011. In his new capacity, Mr Altieri will be responsible for sourcing new business both in the provision of technology and in the sourcing of new development opportunities.
Following the energy conference in Amman last October, the Kirchner Solar Group has entered into an agreement with sonnen_systeme Projektgesellschaft GmbH, the Deutsche Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG) and the Berrou Ingenieur Consult GmbH in cooperation with the University Rostock from Germany, to aid Jordan in becoming energy independent through solar power.
The Research Council of Oman, Saudi Arabia, has approved a budget to fund studies on renewable energy in the Sultanate. The study will be conducted by Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in partnership with the ministries of environment and climate affairs, transport and communications and the regulatory authority for electricity, along with leading international research institutions from the United States. Last summer, the Research Council agreed to support 53 other projects in fields such as healthcare, education and telecommunications.
Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) in Riyadh will be equipped with the city’s first solar rooftop plant using Conergy’s PV modules. The 200kW installation will be located on the roofs of towers A and C in the KAFD, reducing the city’s dependence on oil-generated electricity and bringing the city closer to its goal of becoming a recipient of the ‘LEED Gold’ certification awarded by the US Green Building Council.
